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Invent a use 10 min Recommended: 4–20 players

Patently Absurd.

Real patents. Ridiculous inventions. The weirder, the better.

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LIVE · ROUND 1 4F—82

Patently Absurd

"Patent #US3216423 — a curved metal tube with three handles."
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How it plays

Four phases. 10 min.

Patently Absurd shows the room a real, often baffling patent diagram pulled from public archives. Each player invents a plausible fake use for it — then the real use hides among the fakes on an anonymous ballot. Spot the real one for points; every player your invention fools scores you more. The truth is usually weirder than anything the players came up with.

Phase 01

Show

look

A real patent diagram fills the host screen.

Phase 02

Invent

90s

Write a plausible fake use on your phone.

Phase 03

Vote

60s

Spot the real use among the inventions — it's hiding on the ballot.

Phase 04

Reveal

results

The truth — and who fooled whom.

Why teams use it

It works because it’s structured.

01

Pure creative warm-up

Loosens the analytical brain before deeper ideation work.

02

Equalises the room

Engineers and designers and marketers all guess equally badly.

03

Shareable laughs

The weirdest inventions become team folklore.

Sample prompts

What you might play with.

01 "Patent #US3216423 — a curved metal tube with three handles."
02 "Patent #US4233942 — a hat with a built-in periscope."
03 "Patent #US1518248 — a chair with two seats facing opposite directions."

Best for.

Workshop warm-upscreative team kickoffsFriday wind-downsinnovation offsites

Host Patently Absurd now.

Free during beta · no credit card · room ready in 10 seconds. All 12 games share one host account.

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